SB 431 Summary

• Amends Vehicle Code Section 21703 to require that determining reasonable and prudent following distances between vehicles must take into account the presence of vehicle automation technology, including driver-assistive truck platooning systems.

• Defines "driver-assistive truck platooning system" as vehicle automation technology that synchronizes acceleration and braking between two vehicles using sensor arrays, wireless communications, and specialized software while keeping steering control with each driver.

• Amends Vehicle Code Section 21705 to clarify that the 100-foot minimum spacing requirement between vehicles in caravans or motorcades applies only when three or more motor vehicles are involved.

• Takes effect immediately as an urgency statute to allow California to access available federal funding for testing automated vehicle technologies on roads and highways.